Beet harvester



H. O. SPARKS BEET HARVESTER June 8, 1937.

Filed March 3, 1936 5 Sheets-Sheet l u INVENTOR. Aim R) 0' 63 4/2/16ATTORNEY.

H. O. SPARKS BEET HARVESTER June 8, 1937.

Filed March s, 1936 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEY.

H. O. SPARKS June 8, 1937.

BEET HARYESTER 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed March 3, 1936 INVENTOR.

W ATTORNEY.

o. SPARKS June 1937.

BEET HARVESTER Filed March 5, 1936 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR ATTORNEY. I

H. O. SPARKS BEET HARVESTER June 8, 1937.

Filed March 3, 1936 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR.

fl. l-

. 1 ATTORNEY:

Patented June 8, 1937 'UNlTED STATES ATEQNT OFFICE This inventionrelates to a combined beet digging and topping machine and has for itsprincipal object the provision of a highly eificient machine which canbe drawn along a row of beets 5 in the field and which will dig thebeets; cut the tops from thedug beets'; and pile the cut tops inspaced-apart-piles along the rows.

Another "object of the invention is to provide a'machine of this type inwhich all of the op- 10 erations will be under instant andaccurateco'ntrol of the operator; which can be accurately guided alongthe row of beets; and which canv be accurately regulated both as to thedepth of plowing and the thickness of the cut tops.

Other objects and advantages reside in the detail construction of theinvention, which is designed for simplicity, economy, and efficiency.

These will become more apparent from the following description.

In the following detailed description of the invention reference is hadto the accompanying drawings which forma part hereof. Likenumerals-refer, to like parts in all views of the drawings andthroughout the description.

In the drawingsz- V Fig. 1 is a left side elevation of the improved beetdiggingand topping machine.

Fig. 2 is a right side elevation thereof.

Fig-'3 is a longitudinal section therethrough;

s taken on the line 3-3, Fig. 4. V

Fig. 4 is a front view. V Fig. 5 is a detail section through the beetelevator, illustrating the cushioned beet rolls. 7 Fig. 6 is a similardetail section taken on the 35 line 6-8, Fig. 5; v u v Fig. 7 is anenlarged detail section illustrating the construction of the beetclamping drums.

' Fig. 8 is adetailplan' View of the'bee't elevator. Fig. 9 is anenlarged detail view illustrating the construction of the beet elevator.

the side of the beet elevator, partially broken away to show theinterior construction. The

broken away portion of this view is taken on the Fig. '11 is a detailsection through one of the.

elevator compression springs taken on the line H- -H,Fig-. 9.

a Fig. 12 is a detail plan view ofthe beet lifting:

Fig. is a fragmentary View illustrating The guiding can be accomplishedin any desired manner. As illustrated, steering arms M are projectedforwardly from the posts 13 and connected together by means of a tie rodii. A lever I6 is pivotallyiconnected to the rod l5. The 5 lever 16 isactuated by means of a steering mechanism l 7 which in turn is operatedfroma steer? ing frame l8. The frame l8 can berocked'froml side to sideby the operator to guide the machine accurately along a'row of beets.Thesteer- 10 ing frame can be easily reached from an opera: tors seatl9. s l

The front of the frame I'll can be raised and lowered with reference tothe wheels l2. This is accomplished by meansof jack screws 20 which actto raise and lower the forward extremity "of the frame [0 on thesteering posits l3.

Between the wheels I 2, a. pair of digging or lifting plows '2! iscarried on the l'ower'extremities of curved plow beams 22. The plow beam's 22 project downwardly and forwardly from a suspended frame 23which can be raised and lowered to and from the frame ID. The forwardextremity of the suspended frame 23 is provided with rollers 24 whichtravelin verticaliguides 25 at the front 'of the machine as the frame23' is raised and lowered to prevent horizontal movement'of thesuspended frame 23. v

The front of the suspended frame 23 may b raised'from the operatorsposition by means of a first hand le'ver26. The rear of the frame 23 canbe raised and lowered by means of a second hand lever 21'.

Thus, by adjusting thepos'ition of the hand levers 2 6 and 27, theoperator can, not only con- 3 trol'the depth at which the lifting plows2| travel, but can also- 'contro'l theangle or .suction of these lows SOthat they will maintaihthhlslve s at the desired level with'arm imufniofdrag. When the machine is beingtransported and is 2g not in use, bothlevers 26 and 21 can be operated to lift the plowsjcompletely above theground.

A spring 28 assists in carrying the weight of the frame 23 to reduce the'ei'rertion requires in op erating the lovers 26 and 21. v, I 4

Immediately ahead of the plows 21, two rolling 7 discs 29 arepositioned. The discs 29 are carried on rotatable bracket arms from thesuspended frame'23 so that their angle can be'adj'usted an so that theywill raise and lower with the sus 5o pended frame 23.

A beet elevator extends 'rearwardly enact. wardly from a position to therear of the plows 21. The beet elevator consists of two cooperatingendless belt-chains 3B, which engage opposite sides of the beet leavesor tops and elevate the beets to the rear of the machine suspended bytheir tops. The belt-chains preferably comprise endless sprocket chains30w, the outer faces of which are covered by means of canvas or fabricpads 36b riveted or otherwise secured to the chains 30a. The belt-chains3B are suspended between power sprockets 3! at the upper rear of themachine and front idler sprockets 32 positione-d immediately behind theplows 2|.

The inner reaches of the belt-chains 30 are constantly pressed towardeach other by means of compression springs 33 which act against a seriesof overlapped angle bars 34 which form a flexible track to press theangle bars against the belt-chains. This track is supported upon aseries of slides 35, there being one slide positioned adjacent each ofthe springs 33. The slides 35 rigidly project from a chain frame member36 which extends parallel to the run of the beltchains 36. The rearwardextremities of the chain frame members 36 are suspended, by means of asuitable hanging frame 37, from a cross shaft 38.

The cross shaft 38 is mounted in suitable bearings upon an L-shapedlever 39 pivoted to the top of the frame ID at 40, so that the shaft maybe raised or lowered as desired. The levers 39 at the opposite sides ofthe machine are connected to a common crank shaft 4! by means ofconnecting bars 42 so that the levers 39 at the opposite sides will movein unison. These levers can be swung by means of a hand lever 43 throughthe medium of a connecting rod 44 so that the rear extremity of the beetelevator can be raised and lowered as desired.

The forward extremity of the elevator is supported from a bracket 45which in turn is suspended by means of a hanger bar 46 from a crank arm41 operated by means of a hand lever 48. Thus, by operation of the handlevers 43 and 48 the height of either or both extremities of theelevator and the incline thereof can be changed at will.

The power sprockets 3| are mounted upon sprocket shafts 49 whichterminate at their upper extremities in bevel gears 50 driven from thecross shaft 38. Power is supplied to the cross shaft 38 through themedium of a sprocket chain 5| from a power shaft 52 which extends acrossthe frame lllabove the beet elevator. The power shaft 52 is driven froma suitable engine 53 which delivers its power through a series of chainsand sprockets conveniently shown at 54, which serve as speed reducers,to the shaft 52.

Below the belt-chains 30 and adjacent the rear of their travel, are twovertically-inclined, cushioned drums 55. The cushioned drums 55 aresecured on angle shafts 56 driven from a. lateral gear shaft 51, whichin'turn is driven from the shaft 52 by means of a sprocket chain 58.

The detail construction of the drums 55 is illustrated in Fig. 7. Eachcomprises a bottom ring band 59 from which flexible leaves or staves 60of spring steel or similar material extend upwardly to form a flexiblecylindrical skirt. The staves 60 are preferably covered by means ofa'flexible canvas cover 6| forming a complete cylindrical roller or drumof exceeding flexibility. It is pre ferred to provide slats 62 upon theexterior of the drums 55 to give them greater gripping qualities.

A bracket 63 extends downwardly within each drum. A pair of roller arms64 is hinged to the bracket 63 within each of the drums 55. Each of theroller arms terminates in an internal roller 65.

The rollers 65 are constantly pressed against the inner surface of thecushioned drum 55 by means of compression springs 66. The two drums 55are positioned opposite each other on opposite sides of, and below, thebelt-chains. The internal rollers are positioned opposite the adjacentsides of the two cushioned drums 55.

A reciprocating knife blade 61 extends laterally across the frame l0between the belt chains 30 and the cushion drums 55. The knife blade iscarried in oppositely positioned guides 69 so that it is maintained in afixed position but is free to reciprocate longitudinally. Thereciprocation is imparted by a crank 69 which is connected through aconnecting rod ill with the knife blade 61. The crank 69 is driventhrough miter gears H from a sprocket shaft 12 which in turn is drivenby means of a chain 13 from the power shaft 52.

Immediately behind the cushion drums 55 is a beet receiving compartment74, in the bottom of which a beet conveyer I5 is positioned. Theconveyer 15 is driven through a drive chain 16, bevel gears 11, and asprocket chain 18 from the power shaft 52.

A top receiving compartment 19 is positioned immediately back of theupper and rearward extremity of the belt chains 30. A top conveyor ispositioned in the top receiving compartment 19 and extends laterally ofthe machine. The conveyer 80 is driven from a shaft 8| extending to asprocket 82 which meshes with the chain 16. The beet conveyer l5 and thetop conveyer 80, bothextend outwardly to one side of the machine andboth are preferably inclined upwardly so as to elevate the beets andtops to that side.

The top conveyer 80 terminates over a receiving hopper 83 provided witha hinged bottom 84 which is held in the closed position by means of adump lever 85 connected through to the bottom 84 by means of aconnecting rod 86.

The device may be connected to any suitable traction means such as ateam or tractor by means of a suitable draw bar 81.

Operation The machine is driven over a row of beets, the jack screws 20are adjusted to properly level the machine. The plow adjusting levers 26and 21 are adjusted to place the plows 2| the proper distance below theground so that they will travel along each side of the beets to loosenand lift them from their positions, as shown in Fig. 3. These plows aredesigned to lift the beets straight upwardly from the ground, allowingthem to remain in a loose elevated position. The discs break the groundat each side of the row and throw the dirt and clods outward to preventpiling over the plows.

The plows are followed by the belt-chains 30 which roll inwardly andengage and squeeze the beet tops or leaves and stalks between them. Thisgrip is maintained throughout the length of the beet elevator. The angleor incline of the elevator lifts the suspended beets until they reachthe cushioned drums 55. The rotation of these drums rolls the beetstightly between them and the action of the spring staves 60 and thecompression springs 66 of the drums maintains a tight grip on the beetas it passes. It is desired to call attention to the fact that the beetis gripped rigidly, first by its top stems and leaves which are betweenthe belt-chains 30 and also by its body which is practically surroundedby the cushioned surface of the drums 55. The four inof the lever 48.

1 construction of the digging plows 2|.

a sence:

ner rollers 65 clamp the. flexible roll surface about the two sideso-fthebeet as shown in Fig. 6. 1m this rigidly; held condition, the beetpasses the rapidly reciprocating knife blade 6l which severs the topfromthe beet as it passes.

The rotation ofxthe drums 55.snaps the gripped beet from the grip of theinner rollers. 65' and. throws: it into the beet compartment 14. The.

conveyer 151 then carries thetopped beet to one side of the machine anddeposits it in the clear space. between the rows. retained, between thebelt-chains 30xand carried upwardly whereit is thrown from between the.

belts into-the top compartments 19 and upon the conveyerciifl. to theside and'piles them in the hopper 83. At desired intervals the operatoroperates the dump lever 85: to discharge theaccumulated tops into pilesalongthe beet row which can be later loaded:

and stored for feed.

The point at which the belt-chains 30 grip thetops can be quickly andeasily adjusted to the most satisfactory position by adjusting theheight of thefront extremity of the belt-chain by means Should it stillbe found that the knife is not cutting the proper depth of top from thebeets, the rear extremity of the chain belt can be accurately raised orlowered by means of the lever 43 so as to vary the vertical position ofthe beet at the point where it enters the cushion drums 55. Therefore anaccurate control of both; the digging and the. topping is within reachof the operator at all times.

It is desired to call particular attention to the It has been found thatthe most satisfactory plows for the purpose of this machine are tworelatively flat' bars lying in a common, substantially horizontal plane.The forward extremities of the bars are ,fiared outwardly, as-shown inFig. 12, and the rearward extremities approach each other on a moregradual wedging angle. This construction passes readily through theground and wedges the beets upwardly therein in substantially a verticall position. To assist in the wedging action, and to reduce the drag uponthe plows, the forward flared extremities of the bars are beveled ontheir inner surfaces, as indicated at 88.

While a specific form of the improvement has been described andillustrated herein, it is desired to be understood that the same may bevaried, within the scope of the appended claims, without departingfrom'the spirit of the invention.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed and desired securedby Letters Patent 1s:-

1. A beet digging and topping machine comprising: a wheeled frame; beetlifting plows suspended below the forward extremity of said frame; apair of endless clamping belts extending from a position to the rear ofand above said lifting plows and extending upwardly and rearwardly insaid frame; resilient -means for forcing said clamping belts againsteach other so that they will engage and hold a beet top after the beethas been lifted by said plows; and a knife for severing the tops fromthe suspended beets as the latter are carried along by said clampingbelts; and. means for raising or lowering the rearward extremities ofsaid clamping belts.

2. A beet digging and topping machine comprising: a wheeled frame; beetlifting plows sus pended below the forward extremity of said The severedtop-is still The conveyer' 89: carries. the: tops.

frame; a pair of endless' clamping belts extending-from a positionto-therear. of and abovesaid. liftingplowsand extending upwardly andrear wardly in said frame; resilient meansfor forcing said clampingbelts against each other sothat they will engage and hold: a beet topafter the beet has been lifted b-y'said plows; and a knifefor severingthe topsfrom the suspended beets as the latter are carried along bysaid; clamping belts; and means for independently raising or loweringeithen extremity of said clamping belts.

3. 'A' beet topping device for'beetl diggers of the typehavingn beetlifting. plows comprising; a pair of adjacent endless belt-likemembersextending rearwardly, and upwardly from said. plows; means forforcing one face of each mem ber toward the adjacentv face of theopposite member; means for causing said adjacentfaces to travelrearwardly so that they will clamp a beet top and carry. a beetsuspended by said top;,and means for severing the suspended beets I fromsaid top as they travel; a pair of cushioned rotary members positionedbelow said belt-like members so as to engage the opposite sides of asuspendedzbeet at a. predetermined point in its.

a travel; and a knife member positioned between ering the suspendedbeets from said'top as they travel, a pair of cushioned rotary memberspositioned below said belt-like members so asto enage the opposite sidesof a suspended beet at a predetermined point in its travel; areciprocating knife positioned. between. said belt-like members and saidrotary members; and means for reciprocating said knife so that it willsever the top from a beet while the latter is clamped between saidrotary members.

5. Means for elevating loosened beets from the ground and conveying saidbeets to a topping mechanism comprising: two similar, longitudinallyextending, endless, belt-like members extending parallel to and adjacenteach other; springs positioned between the sides of each of said membersand acting to urge the adjacent sides of both against each other so thatsaid members will engage the opposite sides of the stalks and leaves ofa beet top and carry the beet suspended by its top upwardly to a toppingmechanism; and rotary means for engaging the opposite sides of a beetwhen the latter has reached said topping mechanism to hold it in theproper position for topping.

6. Means for elevating loosened beets from the ground and conveying saidbeets to a topping mechanism comprising: two similar, longitudinallyextending, endless, belt-like members extending parallel to and adjacenteach other; springs positioned between the sides of each of said membersand acting to urge the adjacent sides of both against each other so thatsaid members will engage the opposite sides of the stalks and leaves ofa beet top and carry the beet suspended by its topupwardly to a toppingmechanlsm; and rotary means for engaging the opposite sides of a beetwhen the latter has reachedv said topping mechanism to hold it in theproper position for topping; each of said rotary members' comprising: aflexible, cylindrical drum; and a shaft extending through and connectedto said drum to rotate the latter.

'7. Means for elevating loosened beets from the ground and conveyingsaid beets to a topping mechanism comprising: two similar,longitudinally extending, endless, belt-like members extending parallelto and adjacent each other; springs positionedvbetween the sides of eachof said members and acting to urge the adjacent sides of both againsteach other so that said members will engage the opposite sides of thestalks and leaves of a beet top and carry the beet suspended by its topupwardly to a topping mechanism; and a pair of rotary members forengaging the opposite sides of a beet when the latter has reached saidtopping mechanism to hold it in the proper position for topping, each ofsaid rotary members comprising: a flexible, cylindrical drum; and ashaft extending through and connected to said drum to rotate the latter;and means within each drum for forcing the adjacent flexible sides ofboth drums toward each other.

8. A combined beet digging and topping machine comprising: a supportingframe; wheels supporting said frame; a beet digging plow suspended fromthe forward extremity of said frame; a pair of clamping belts extendingupwardly and rearwardly from said plows so as to engage the tops of thebeets as they are dug by said plows and carry said beets upwardly andrearwardly suspended by their tops; a topping knife positioned in thepath of travel of said beets to sever the tops therefrom; and cushionedrotary means for successively engaging the beets as they reach saidknife.

9. A combined beet digging and topping machine comprising: a supportingframe; wheels supporting said frame; a beet digging plow suspended fromthe forwardextremity of said frame; a pair of clamping belts extendingupwardly and rearwardly from said plows so as to engage the tops of thebeets as they are dug by said plows and carry said beets upwardly andrearwardly suspended by their tops; a topping knife positioned in thepath of travel of said beets to sever the tops therefrom; cushionedrotary means for successively engaging the beets as they reach saidknife; and holding the beets after they have been severed from theirtops; a beet compartment for receiving the beets from said rotary means;and means for conveying the beets from said beet compartment.

10. A combined beet digging and topping machine comprising: a supportingframe; wheels supporting said frame; a beet digging plow suspended fromthe forward extremity of said frame; a pair of clamping belts extendingupwardly and rearwardly from said plows so as to engage the tops of thebeets as they are dug by said plows and carry said beets upwardly andrearwardly suspended by their tops; a topping knife positioned in thepath of travel of said beets to sever the tops therefrom; cushionedrotary means for successively engaging the beets as they reach saidknife; and holding the beets after they have been severed from theirtops; a beet compartment for receiving the beets from said rotary means;means for conveying the beets from said beet compartment; a topcompartment for receiving the tops; conveying means for carrying thetops from said top compartment; a hopper for receiving the tops fromsaid conveying means; and means for dumping said hopper at desiredintervals to pile said tops in spaced apart piles.

HENRY O. SPARKS.

